With the advent of digital formatting, it is possible to distribute multimedia content (e.g., video, audio, etc.) through many avenues. For example, after a movie production makes its run through the theaters, additional distribution channels include independent cable and satellite networks, through disk (e.g., DVD [digital versatile disk], CD [compact disk], etc.), and through internet streaming to name a few. In that manner, a customer may purchase a copy of the digital content for personal use. That use may include rights to use the digital content one time or multiple times.
An association of an customer's rights to digital content previously involved a third party certification service. For example, when a customer purchased digital content, that customer may be given a certificate that is authorized by a third party. As such, to prove that they had rights associated with the digital content, the customer would present the certificate, which would then be delivered to the third party for authorization. In another example, a new offer for additional merchandise related to the movie may be made to existing customers. In that case, a customer interested in the offer is able to prove ownership by presenting the certificate. Once the certificate is verified, the offer is presented to the customer.
However, this process is burdensome because it involves an independent third party. That is, verification of the certificate must be performed by the third party authentication service. This involves sending the certificate through a communication network, having the certificate processed by the third party, and then waiting for the results of the verification to be returned.
Moreover, when that third party authentication service goes out of business, verification of those certificates is compromised. Frequently, no transfer of certificates is made to another authentication service once the original service is out of business. As such, even if a customer holds a certificate showing rights to digital content, there is no process for verifying the validity of that certificate. In that case, the customer could not prove rights to the digital content, and may not be able to take advantage of additional promotions related to the digital content.
It is desirous to prove one or more rights to digital content without using a third party authentication service.